How To Contest Drug Possession Charges In Florida: A Brief Overview For Residents Of Miami-Dade County

In this article, you can discover…

• What to do after being charged with drug possession in Florida.
• Potential defenses against drug charges in Florida.
• How an experienced attorney can help you fight those charges.

What Is The First Thing I Should Do After Being Charged With Drug Possession In Florida?

The first thing you should do after being charged with drug possession is to consult with an experienced criminal defense attorney. Depending on the charges you face and the amount of drugs you are alleged to have had on you, the potential consequences can be quite different.

For example, having a pocket full of marijuana in Miami-Dade County may not lead to any charges. At the most, you’ll face only misdemeanor charges. However, a very small baggy of suspected cocaine will lead to felony charges and up to five years in state prison.

Depending on the quantity of cocaine found on you, you could also be charged with drug trafficking. The charge of trafficking comes with a mandatory minimum sentence, which can only be waived by the State Attorney’s Office. If your sentence is not waived by the State Attorney’s Office, you could be looking at a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years.

Charges for substances like methamphetamine or fentanyl can be much harsher. It is therefore crucial for you to reach out to a criminal defense attorney with ample experience handling drug possession cases.

What Are The Potential Defenses Against Drug Possession Charges In Florida?

A possible defense is that you did not possess the drugs to begin with, as they did not belong to you. Often, the State of Florida will pursue a drug possession case through “a theory of constructive possession”, arguing that more than one person can possess an item.

For example, if drugs are found underneath the car seat of a vehicle with multiple occupants, they could charge anyone or everyone in the vehicle with possession of the same drug. A defense to this tactic is that they were not your drugs and that you did not possess them. One of the ways we can demonstrate this is to show that you did not, at any time, have dominion or control over the drugs that were found.

Another possible defense is that the “drugs” were not drugs at all. It often happens that police officers come across a substance that they suspect to be illegal drugs while conducting a traffic stop and arrest the driver for possession. For example, loose leaf tobacco might be mistaken for marijuana. Independent testing of the substance ordered by your attorney can prove that the substance was not illegal, leading to the charges against you being dropped.

In other cases, you may indeed have a prescription for a controlled substance, such as Xanax, that is found in your pocket. If you have a current and valid prescription for a drug, then you are not in illegal possession.

How Can An Attorney Help Me Fight Drug Possession Charges In Florida?

An experienced attorney can spot potential issues with any given case. For example, if the drug itself was not illegal, if you have a prescription for the substance, or if you were not in possession of the substance that was found. A lawyer will understand potential defenses and can examine the background of your case to see which defenses might apply.

Your defense attorney may also discover that the traffic stop wherein illegal drugs were found was illegal itself, as the officer did not have probable cause to pull you over to begin with. In this case, your attorney may be able to have the evidence against you suppressed.

In any of these cases, your attorney can examine your case and help you build a meaningful defense, ideally seeing charges lowered or dropped.

Still Have Questions? Ready To Get Started?

For more information on Contest drug possession charges Florida, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (305) 917-5284 today.